Bettman defends handling of Pride situations
SUNRISE, FLA. >> NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman at his state of the game news conference Saturday at AllStar Weekend defended the way the league and two teams handled situations that arose regarding Pride night celebrations.
Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov did not take part in warmups Jan. 18 because he refused to wear a Pridethemed jersey. Nine days later, the New York Rangers opted not to wear Pride jerseys or use Pride stick tape as part of their night despite previously advertising they planned to do so.
Bettman said tolerance of varying viewpoints was part of being “open, welcoming and inclusive.”
“You know what our goals, our values and our intentions are across the league, whether it's at the league level or at the club level,” he said. “But we also have to respect some individual choice, and some people are more comfortable embracing themselves in causes than others. And part of being diverse and welcoming is understanding those differences.”
Bettman said the NHL was not accepting bigotry or promoting homophobia.
Pro basketball
BAMBA, RIVERS, SUGGS ALL SUSPENDED AFTER DUSTUP
>> The NBA has suspended Orlando's Mo Bamba for four games and Minnesota's Austin Rivers for three games for their roles in an on-court altercation on Friday night.
Jalen Suggs of the Magic will miss one game, the league said, for escalating the incident.
Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels was fined $20,000 for getting involved in the altercation.
Bamba and Rivers threw punches during the incident, and the NBA said Suggs and McDaniels “then entered the altercation as non-peacemakers.”
Tennis
U.S. ADVANCES TO GROUP
STAGE >> The United States swept its way into the group stage of the Davis Cup Finals, getting the winning point in a 4-0 victory over Uzbekistan from the doubles team of Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek.
They beat Sergey Fomin and Sanjar Fayziev 6-2, 6-4, after Tommy Paul and Mackenzie McDonald had won singles matches Friday in Tashkent.